Search the Sisterhood
Recovering the 1884 Woman’s Literary Department for the 21st Century
Discover the Sisterhood
The original Woman’s Literary Department was created for exhibition at the 1884 New Orleans World’s Fair. It comprised more than 1,400 items – books, journals, newspapers, and sheet music donated by publishers and collected by “lady delegates” from around the US.
While the vast majority of these materials were written and edited by US women, works from England, France, and Germany was also included – as was several titles by men. Black women were not represented, despite having proposed to exhibit their works alongside those by white women.
At the Fair’s conclusion, the director of the Woman’s Literary Department, Maud Howe, declared herself determined “to keep this beautiful sisterhood of books together” as a permanent library. But circumstances intervened and, within months of its presentation to a local arts society, the physical collection was scattered and lost.
This Beautiful Sisterhood of Books recovers Maud’s library for new readers and researchers.
Explore Maud’s library in its new digital form…
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